Concrete form structure and sealing means therefor



July 6, 1965 F. TUMEY ETAL CONCRETE FORM STRUCTURE AND SEALING MEANS THEREFOR S Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed NOV. 9, 1962 BY M INVENTORS ATTORNEY y 1965 L. F. TUMEY ETAL 3,193,242

CONCRETE FORM STRUCTURE AND SEALING MEANS THEREFOR 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. 9, 1962 INVENTORS LAWRENCE F. TUMEY THEODORE R. GILMET EV M ATTQRNEY July 6, 1965 L. F. TUMEY ETAL 3,193,24

CONCRETE FORM STRUCTURE AND SEALING MEANS THEREFOR Filed Nov. 9, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 LAWREN F.TUPEY THEODORE R GILMET VENTORS m A44 p ATTORNEY United States Patent F 3,193,242 CONCRETE FORM STRUCTURE AND SEALING MEANS THEREEUR Lawrence F. Tunney and Theodore R. Giiniet, Lalreland, 1a., assignors to FMQ Corporation, San Hose, Calif a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 9, 1962, Ser. No. 236,539 1 Claim. (Cl. 249--I88) This invention relates to concrete forming apparatus and more particularly to a flexible sealing strip for use in assembling and sealing concrete forming members to form a mold.

In the casting of concrete structural members, three basic forming sections are used in order to provide form versatility, namely two side forming members or forms, and a bottom or base forming member, commonly known as the pilot liner. In order to eliminate rough corners and provide the cast concrete member with a smooth shape, chamfer strips are used at the lower corners of the mold for the structural members, and such strips are usually afiixed to the pilot liner and serve the dual function of sealing between the side forms and the pilot liner, as well as chamfering the corners of the concrete product. conventionally, wooden or metallic strips have been utilized as chamfer strips. However, these strips have been found to possess numerous disadvantages.

Wooden strips are often destroyed during the molding process because of their tendency to adhere to the concrete product, the removal or" the forms causing the hardened concrete to strip the wooden chamfer strips from the pilot liner. Metallic strips, although more costly, are more durable and are generally reuseable; however, these present a problem in sealing between the associated side form and the pilot liner. When the concrete aggregate is poured into the forms, a side pressure of considerable magnitude will be exerted against the side forms, tending to bow or bulge them outwardly away from the pilot liner, and this occurs even though the side forms are tied together at both top and bottom. The provision of stiffener members or gusset plates at regularly spaced intervals along the length of the side forms reduces bowing of the side forms to some extent. However, since the side forms retain some flexibility between the gusset plates, they will bow outwardly in these areas, opening a series of spaces or pockets between the chamter strip and the side forms. Also, the side forms are seldom truly flat, due to variations within mill tolerances, as well as distortions caused by welding during fabrication of the forms.

Because of these conditions, a perfect seal is difficult to establish between the pilot liner and side forms by using conventional chamfer strips, and the liquid concrete will flow into the resultant gaps. This results in jagged lips and extrusions on the molded concrete structural member, and detracts from the appearance and usefulness of the member. Also, the concrete which has filled the pockets between the pilot liner and theside forms and which remains there, must be removed prior to subsequent use of the forms, thus causing delays and expense in the production of the concrete members.

Because of these problems encountered with conventional wooden or metallic chamfer strips, flem'ble chamfer sealing strips have been proposed in order to provide a better sealing action between the forming members. However, even these have presented ditliculties, particularly in the fastening of the flexible sealing strips to the forming members. The use of glue and the use of nails or bolts for fastening the strips have been found to be inadequate to keep the strips fastened securely in place. Through repeated usage, the flexible strips be- 'forms are fabricated of parts welded together.

,7 sisters Patented July 6, 1965 come displaced from their original positions, thus losing their effectiveness either as a seal or as a chamfering means, or as both.

An object of the present invention, therefore, is to provide an improved flexibly sealed joint between adjacent concrete forming members, to prevent the leakage of the concrete between the forms during the forming process.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved flexible chamfer sealing strip for use with concrete forming members, so that a continuous seal will be assured between the forming members along the entire length thereof.

Another object of this invention is to provide a means for fastening the flexible chamfer sealing strips to the forming members which will securely hold the strips in position throughout repeated usage of the forms.

Another object of this invention is to provide a fiex ible chamfer sealing strip which can be easily installed or replaced on concrete forming member.

Another object of this invention is to provide a concrete forming structure which can be used to cast a variety of diilerently sized and shaped concrete structural members, that have no jagged or irregular corners.

Another object of this invention is to provide a fastener for the strips which will accommodate a plurality of different sized charnfer seal strips which may be easily inserted therein.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective of a portion of a concrete form utilizing the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged vertical section showing a chamfered sealing strip and securing means of the present invention.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged vertical section similar to FIGURE 2 but illustrating a modified form of securing means.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary perspective showing the chamfer sealing strip of FIGURES 2 and 3.'

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged vertical section similar to FIGURE 3 but illustrating a modified form of sealing strip embodying the present invention.

FIGURE 1, illustrates an assembled form for the casting of concrete structural members. The assembly comprises, in general, a bottom forming member or pilot liner 1t), and side forms 11 and 12, which abut the pilot liner to provide a generally U-shaped molding cavity. Attached to either side of the pilot liner 1% is a flexible sealing strip S of the present invention, which serves both to charnfer the corners of the structure to be molded within the form, and to seal the spaces between liner Ill and side forms ill and 12. The strip S is fastened onto the pilot liner by fasteners F, in a manner to be presently explained. The entire structure is supported on a concrete base B. V

The side forms 11 and 12 are of the same construction, except one is a left form and the other a right form. The

For example form 12 comprises a side plate 13, a top plate 13a, and a bottom plate 1 having an abutment flange 1411. To achieve a tight sealing engagement between the pilot liner and the side forms, and to prevent the latter from bowing outwardly against the pressure of the concrete poured into the mold, each of the side forms 11 and 12 is provided with gusset plates 15, welded to the top, side and bottom plates. The side forms are laterally retained on the base by means of angle members 16 which are secured to the base by bolts 17. Wooden wedge or shim members 19 are used to force the side formsll and 12 into engagement with the pilot liner 10. Tie rails Ell are positioned across the top portion of the sideforms 11 and 12 and are spaced longitudinally therealong, only one such tie rail being shown 'in FIGURE 1. These rails may be spot welded to the side forms or may fit in sockets in the top plate 13a, these details forming no part of the present invention. In fact, the particular structure for tying together the side forms and the pilot liner forms no part of the invention. Any of several well known alternate methods may be so employed, such as clamp bolts extending beneath the pilot liner.

Welded to the top edge of each of the side forms 11 and 12 is a chamfer strip 21 which is formed as a continuous triangular steel bar.

Details of the sealing strip S of the present invention and its mounting appear in FIG. 2. The pilot liner comprises an inverted channel member having a flat base portion 30 and a pair of vertical supporting leg portions 31, only one of which is shown in FIGURE 2. Spot welded to the flat base portion 30 of the channel member is a plate 32 which overhangs the base portion on either side to form continuous grooves 33 along the length of the pilot liner. As will be seen, grooves 33 are provided to receive a lip portion of the sealing strip S.

As has been described, the joint between each side form and pilot liner is sealed by a sealing strip S mounted on the pilot liner by the fastening means F. The sealing strip S is formed of a flexible, rubberlike material such as neoprene. This material is unaffected by the form oils and the release agents used during the molding process. The sealing strip material has a hardness of approximately 70 Durometer on the Shore scale A, in order that 'the material will hold its shape and resist abrasion and handling in the mold form.

The sealing strip has a dovetailed base portion 40 that is clamped in place on the pilot liner, and projecting from the base portion 40 is a freely extending, tapered body portion 41, which has a flat, generally vertical, outer sealing face 46, that seals against the associated side form. The sealing strip body portion 41 also has a flat face 47, that provides a chamfered corner surface for the concrete. The base portion 40 of the sealing strip is formed with a flat'inner sealing face 48. Face 48 is vertically disposed for sealing engagement with the outer surface of vertical leg 31 of the pilot liner. The body portion also is provided with a narrow inner sealing face 48a for engaging the edge of pilot liner plate 32.

Adjacent the juncture of the base and body portions of the sealing strip, and between inner sealing faces 48 and 48a, is a continuous rib or lip 49, which projects inwardly past the base portion and is received by the groove'33 in the pilot liner 10, previously described. The lip 49 assists in the preventing the sealing strip from being pulled upwardly and away from the pilot liner when the mold is stripped, and also resists the tendency for the strip to pull away from the plate 32 especially when under load conditions. An inclined, downwardly and outwardly opening groove 43 is formed in the sealing strip between the base and body portions, to receive the fastener F, as will be described presently.

As mentioned, the sealing strip is mounted on'the pilot liner by a fastener F, which comprises a continuous clamping member 50, having welded thereto a series of longitudinally spaced, threaded studs 51. The studs are each provided with a shoulder 53 that engages leg 31 of the pilot liner and spaces the clamping member 50 a predetermined distance from the leg of the pilot liner. 'The upper portion of clamping member 50 is formed as an inwardly bent flange 54, which is received in the groove 43 of the sealing strip, to mount the sealing strip on the pilot liner. The lower portion of the clamping member 50 is also bent inwardly to form an abutment flange 55, which engages the leg 31 of the pilot liner, thereby cooperating with the stud shoulders 53 in spacing the clamping member from thepilot liner a predetermined distance.

This spacing is such as to firmly mount the sealing strip S without unduly deforming its base portion.

The sealing strip is fitted to the clamping member 50 before assembly by fitting flange 54 into the groove 43. The clamping member is then bolted to leg 31 of the pilot liner, and the lip 49 of the sealing'strip is received snugly in the groove 33 of the pilot liner. The inner sealing faces 48 and 48a are now firmly pressed against the pilot liner to form a seal, and lip 49 fits snugly into groove 33 in the pilot liner.

Before final assembly, but with the sealing strip thus fastened in place, the outer sealing face 46 is inclined from the vertical, as indicated in phantom in FIGURE 2. In other words, outer sealing face 46 is not parallel to inner sealing face 48 on the base portion 40. When the side form is moved laterally into position, it engages the outer sealing face 46 of the sealing strip, and deforms the body portion 41. This provides resilient sealing engagement between the side form and the sealing strip, forming a leak proof joint between these parts.

When the form is poured, much of the weight of the concrete carried by the chamfer face 47 is borne by flange 54, which reinforces the sealing strip, and prevents damage thereto. It can be seen that the groove 43 constitutes a recess beneath the body portion 41 of the strip to permit the positioning of the fastener F in direct supporting relationship to the load carrying portion of the strip.

In order to produce. beams of less depth, it is only necessary to provide additional support members (not shown) under the pilot liner, to increase its height with respect to the base and side forms. In order to vary the width of the concrete product, pilot liners of different width are used. The chamfer sealing strip and fastening means may be removed from one pilot liner and transferred to another. Thus, the sealing strip S and removable fastening means F provide for versatility in forming various sizes of concrete structural members.

A modification of the invention is illustrated in FIG- URE 3. The mold forming members, including the side form 11 and pilot liner was well as the chamfer sealing strip S, remain the same as those shown in FIGURE 2, but the fastener has been modified.

Fastener F1 of the modified form of the invention consists of an elongated metallic plate 60, which extends longitudinally along and is secured to the pilot liner leg 31. The plate comprises a leg portion 61, which is spot welded to the pilot liner leg 31 at 60a. The fastener plate 60 has an outwardly extending flange portion 62, and an inwardly extending leg or flange 63, which is received in the groove 43 of the sealing chamfer strip.

Before assembly of'the sealing strip S with the fastener F1, flange 63 will be disposed laterally outwardly from its final position. The pre-assembly position of flange 63 is indicated in phantom in FIGURE 3. The sealing strip is pulled through the space between flange 63 and the.

pilot liner. The resulting tension on the rubberlike material of the sealing strip reduces the cross-sectional area of the sealing strip, and facilitates its initial mounting between the fastener and the pilot liner. After the sealing strip is in place, flange 63 is bent inwardly to the solid line position of FIGURE 3, to apply clamping pressure against the base portion of the sealing strip.

FIGURE 5 illustrates a modified form S1 of the sealing strip mounted with the fastener F1 upon a pilot liner 10. Generally,'the structure of such strip is the same as that of the strip of FIGURE 3. The strip S1, which is substantially identical'to the strip Swith respect to its composition and general characteristics, includes a dovetailed base portion 70 and a tapered body portion 71 which extends upwardly and outwardly from the base portion. The base and body portions are partially separated by a recess 73 which lies directly beneath the body portion of the strip and receives the projecting flange 63 of the fastening plate 60. The body portion 71 of the sealing strip S1 includes an oblique outer sealing face 76 that is adapted to seal against a side form, and a flat face 77 to form the chamfered corner on the molded product. The base portion includes a flat face 78 adapted to be locked against the vertical leg 31 of the pilot liner 1t and a smaller surface 7 8a which seals against the edge of the plate 32. Separating the surfaces 78 and 78a is a projecting lip 73 which is received within the groove 33 formed between the end of the plate 32 and the channel member 39, 31 for preventing the strip from being pulled loose from its position upon the pilot liner.

It can be seen that the strip S1 is basically of the same structure as the strip S except that the supporting flange of the fastener element is received within a recess 73, which comprises an outwardly opening V-shaped niche rather than the enclosed groove 43. Furthermore, in sealing strip S1 the inclination from the vertical of the sealing face 76, in the unstressed or unassembled position of the strip, is greater than the inclination of the face 46 of the strip S. As a result, the body portion 71 of the strip S1 will be put under a relatively greater deforming stress, when the sealing strip is placed in operative position with its face 76 abutting a vertical side form member.

In assembling the forming structure with the modified embodiment of FIGURE 5, the sealing strip S1 is placed against the vertical leg 31 and the plate 32 of the pilot liner 10, with the lip 79 snugly received in the groove 33. The flange 63 on the fastener F1 is then bent into a tight engagement with the base portion 70 of the sealing strip, with the upper edge of the flange engaging a wall of recess 73, directly beneath the body portion '71 of the strip. The flange 63 is now in a sealing strip supporting position. The side form members and pilot liner are then assembled in the concrete receiving position of FIGURE 1.

It is, of course, possible for the sealing strip S1 to be used with the fastener F of FIGURE 2, if such an arrangement is preferred.

While several embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be understood that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described the present invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is:

For use in a concrete mold having longitudinally extending first and second concrete form members, a combined sealing and corner chamfering sealing strip formed of rubberlike material, said sealing strip having a base portion having an inner sealing surface for engaging the first form member, a freely extending tapered body portion projecting from said base portion of the sealing strip, said body portion having a concrete corner forming surface and a substantially flat outer sealing surface for engaging the second form member, said outer sealing surface of said body portion being inclined from the plane of said base portion sealing surface, said body portion sealing surface being pivotally movable relative to said base portion into a plane parallel to that of said base portion sealing surface by the second form member to establish relisient sealing engagement between said body portion sealing surface and the second form member, said sealing strip having a recess separating the base portion and the body portion thereof, and a fastening member having means formed for attachment to the first form member, said fastening member having a longitudinally extending, upwardly facing, generally vertically disposed rigid flange disposed in said recess in the sealing strip to clamp said base portion against the first form member and to provide a structural member positioned to engage and reinforce said body portion and absorb vertical loads placed on said body portion in its concrete receiving position.

References (Iited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1/50 Henderson. 3/60 Ratti 277186 WILLIAM J. STEPHENSON, Primary Examiner. 

